The Grazing Tree
by Minx of Lynex
Summary: A collection of stories that I have written for prizes :D  Rated T, just in case :D
1. Proud

Dedicated to Us5614 :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, at all.

I present, Proud :)

{P}

There was not much of anything that bothered her anymore; having grown up in a household where _perfect_ was the only option. After her older sister disappointed the entire family, disappointed her, she had vowed that she would make the Black family proud.

By marrying her husband at the ripe age of seventeen she had made her parents proud and had set the correct example for her younger sister. At becoming the wife to one of the top bachelors in pure blood society she found herself working to make him proud of her too.

On the night that he convinced her to come with him to one of the _meetings_ that he often disappeared to, she met the Dark Lord for the first time. That night having been won over, she made her husband proud by accepting herself as a Death Eater just like him, by taking the mark.

As the year passed and they were immersed in war, she found a new idol to make proud of her, just like her family, like her husband. Every order from the Dark Lord was carried out with fervor; and when the powerful wizard was destroyed by that _infant_, she remained faithful.

In her efforts, she was captured by the Auror's after torturing two of their comrades into near insanity. Not once did she deny the accusations against her; in fact she screamed to the world that her _Lord _would be coming back and that when he did, they would all be sorry.

Time crept by at a snail's pace and despite being locked away with nothing, but the cockroaches to keep her company, she kept her sanity. How her Lord would look down upon her if she allowed herself to become like the others around her. She would not _dishonor_ him.

Even as her own husband came apart at the seams, she stayed strong, devoted, and pure. Finally just like she had always said, like she always swore, her Lord came back and broke them out of Azkaban. Having lost track of things such as time, all she could do was thank him for his generosity.

Just like a good servant should, because that is what she was, the Dark Lord's most _enthusiastic _follower; whatever he demanded she would do. If only to make him proud she would. Then the day came where she followed her sister's _husband_ into the Department of Mysteries.

There she did as directed and murdered the blood traitor that was her cousin. Years before he had denied her Lord, barely escaping with his life. This time however, she caught him with a stunner and with delight watched as he fell through the veil.

Her perfect planning went accordingly and with shrieking laughter she raced away from the scene with the _Brat-Who-Lived_ on her heels. A single second of sharp pain lanced through her back and after a moment she realized, he had set the Cruciatus Curse on her.

Anger flushed through her, but like the _ever_ _faithful_ servant she remained still, jutting out her lower lip at the boy, taunting him. Then her Lord appeared in a mist, entering the brat before he knew what hit him; and with happiness she apparated away, leaving like assigned.

Everything had worked out just like she had planned, like she had been told to do. Since her birth she had strived to be perfect for her family, for her husband, and now she had gone through with her vow and made her Lord proud; just like she had sworn.

{P}

Thanks for reading!

Please leave a review! :)


	2. Mending Vases

Dedicated to Lira Viralily :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

I present, Mending Vases :)

{MV}

_I'd give up forever to touch you, cause I know that you feel me somehow._

It was all that he could do, to just be able to walk through the day without falling apart. More than four years had passed; it will be five tomorrow. The thought left a bitter taste in his mouth and he realized that he was wallowing in his self-pity again. Yet, it wasn't self-pity when it was your own twin that you wept over, was it?

That was the question that he spent the better part of his days trying to answer. It wasn't right the way that things had happened. Nevertheless, five years later, he still sat in this empty apartment unable to step forward; to move on in his life. He knew that his actions hurt his family. Everyone else was able to move on, so why couldn't he?

_All I can taste is this moment and all I can breathe is your life. _

That he supposed is what no one would ever understand. Losing a family member? It happened every day and you learned to deal with it. When you really thought about it, you aren't really close to your family any way. It's just easier. Losing a twin though? Someone that you share half of your soul with?

It wasn't possible to live life to the fullest anymore; no matter what Fred would have wanted or not. There just wasn't a way for him to feel right without his brother there, taking the world with him. All of his brothers had stepped up to talk with him, to give him encouragement and he wasn't going to be the one to say that the only opinion that mattered was his twins.

_Cause sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight._

Through a person's life, there are very few that you truly connect with. George had learned the hard way that whether you love them or not, doesn't matter in the long run. You could have loved that person more than anyone else in the world and it still wouldn't matter; and he doesn't bother holding that knowledge back from anyone.

Lest of all his family. It had taken them more than a year to completely give up on him; to just allow him to sink further into his depression. There wasn't much they could do in any case. He was an adult and if they tried to convince him to get help, he would just banish them from his life; and they didn't want that. It was the last thing they wanted.

_When everything feels like the movies; yeah, you'd bleed just to know you're alive._

So with the struggle of dealing with a family who didn't understand, friends that had moved on, and the world who didn't care, George recovered at the pace of a snail. It was slow and he was nowhere near better. Birthdays were the worst kind of reminders though. As tomorrow would be and for the fifth year in a row, he would be alone.

On those days, spaced so far apart, he wouldn't leave the apartment. He would stay curled up in Fred's untouched bed all day, sobbing his heart out, feeling utterly broken inside. If asked why he hadn't tried to move on, he would scoff. Of course he had tried to move on, but he was shattered. Have you ever tried to glue together a shattered vase? It takes time, effort.

_I don't want the world to see me, cause I don't think that they'd understand._

When truly broken, there isn't much that you can do but to move through the motions. Walking through life, missing everything that passes you by, focused completely on not crumbling to the ground. There were struggles and fights; ending relationships and forgetting those who cared. All there was, was your feelings and heart.

Before you can mend someone else, you have to learn how to mend yourself. It was just that it took time to do it. So tomorrow when their birthday came, he would try to stay on the couch instead, maybe even his own bed. He would try to go out for dinner, maybe see his mother. It wasn't much, because he would still sob, he would still be broken; but it was a start.

_When everything's made to be broken, I just want you to know who I am. _

{MV}

Thanks for reading! Please review! :)


	3. One Thing

For DanceThroughMyStory :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

{OT}

This wasn't something that he was looking forward to, Draco decided. It wasn't like he couldn't take care of himself. All of this was ridiculous. When did his opinions ever matter though? Potter wouldn't have listened anyway.

So here he sat, staring out of the window that watched out into the garden that his late mother had spent so much time in. His bedroom had looked out over the beautiful flowers ever since he could remember. It was a comfort.

After the war everything had slowly began to repair itself. Families recovered and the world was starting to right itself after the horrid hit that it had taken. That was, he thought, until he began to receive the threats from escaped Death Eaters.

The missives claimed that he was a traitor and thus needed to pay for his betrayal in the end. For months he had ignored it, believing that the Auror's would catch the criminals and the letters would end.

However, when a poison doused note made its way into his hands, that was the last straw. He had spent weeks in St. Mungo's recovering from the way the poison seemed to suck the life out of him. It had taken a while, but he was eventually able to come home; which brought him to the situation he was now in.

A quiet knock on the door broke him out of his thoughts and Draco turned around with annoyance. He stood with a sway to his step and marched across the room, ready to swing open the door and give Potter a piece of his mind.

As the door was opened with such force that it hit the wall with a bang, the harsh words caught in his throat and he backed away from the stranger that stood in his doorway. After a moment of careful deliberation, he had deducted that the man was a Weasley; who else had that god awful red hair?

Playing dumb Draco sneered at the man, who was at least a foot taller than himself, "Who are you?" It wouldn't do to give this plebian the upper hand. There was a long moment of silence before the man smirked and stepped forward into the room.

"Charlie Weasley," a hand that could easily engulf his own was held out and with a frown Draco accepted the shake, "I'm your bodyguard, I was hired to protect you." The words were something that the blond had expected.

Snorting, Draco turned and walked back to the seat by the window. Sitting down with a flourish he spat over his shoulder, "I don't need protecting." He could tell that the man was rolling his eyes, that infuriating smirk still on his features.

The presence behind him lurked about the room, obviously checking for any danger, "I'm sure you don't. That is why I am here, to watch you protect yourself." Sarcasm dripped heavily from the words and to show his full appreciation, Draco threw a silent hex at the redhead; what he didn't expect was for it to be canceled out. Damn. In retaliation, his flashed the man his middle finger.

{}

Weeks had passed at a slow crawl and the constant presence of the second Weasley child was beginning to wear on Draco's mind. It was hard to keep his words in line and he had to. He couldn't fend off the man, if made angry.

Charlie was slender in build with wide shoulders that would normally make Draco take a second look; but he would not look twice at the infuriating jerk. Through the weeks, the blonde hadn't been allowed to do anything.

When he had tried to go out and fly, Charlie had thrown him over his shoulder and took him back inside kicking and screaming. He couldn't even go to the Lou without having to shove the brute out of the bathroom so he could have his privacy.

According to the Weasel, there were too many dangers outside and apparently the Death Eaters were likely to try to attack him when at his most vulnerable, thus the protection in the Lou. All Draco had done was to roll his eyes, stalking off to his room and locking himself in.

Nowadays it was the only place that he had his true privacy. The day of his arrival, Charlie had spent hours throwing up protective barriers and wards around the room, making it a sanctuary of sorts. Draco had to admit that it was a bit smart of the man.

Though he wouldn't dare say it to his face; nothing could make him do it. Sighing, the blonde frowned as he stared out the window for the fifth time that week. It was getting old, sitting by the window and the rarity that the act provided was wearing thin.

Shaking his head, Draco stood with an annoyed expression. Damn it, this was his house and he would go wherever he liked. Just because Potter and Charlie thought that there was true danger didn't mean that there was.

So, with the resolve in mind, he stormed across the room and out of the doors. Immediately turning to the left and way from where Charlie stood on guard. Before the redhead had the chance to race after him, Draco had rushed down the corridor and down the stairs; disappearing into the second floor of the Manor, choosing the library and office.

As the door shut softly behind him, the blonde waited a few moments to see if the man had tracked him down; but when everything in the hall remained silent, Draco let out a relieved sigh and walked to one of the couches.

Plopping down, he picked up one of the novels that he had previously been reading and flipped to the last page he had read. Just like that he was at peace with himself and everything seemed to even out.

His eyes roamed over the pages following along with the story when the door to the room opened softly. Peace broken, Draco looked up with a weary expression. There standing in the door was an unfamiliar stout man, "Draco Malfoy?"

Confused, Draco stood with a frown, "You know my name?" At the quick nod from the man, the blonde turned, laying the book back on the table. "Must be a partner of Charlie's." It took a few moments for him to remember what Potter had said the day after Charlie arrived.

_Charlie is an experienced bodyguard; he'll take good care of you. Just remember, he works alone, so there won't be anyone around but you and him._

Slight fear wracked through his chest as Draco fought to keep his breathing even, "And why are you here?" However, as he turned around, something blunt struck the back of his head and his consciousness slipped away before he even hit the ground.

{}

Pain radiated through the back of his head as Draco woke up with a groan. As he shifted, he felt the soft sheets and realized that he was in a bed. Everything came rushing back to him and as he gently touched the bruise, his eyes shot open.

With a quick glance around, he found that he was lying in his own bed and Draco wondered how that was possible. Had the strange man taken Charlie down as well? Had the Death Eaters invaded his house?

A soft scraping alerted his attention and his eyes flickered to the right. There sitting beside the bed was Charlie, his deep blue eyes watching Draco with a strange intensity. It was a look that he had never been on the receiving end of and frankly it made him feel uneasy.

Standing up, Charlie sat on the edge of the bed and reached over. Unable to move back Draco just let the man pull him up and gently grip the back of his head. He immediately regretted it as the redhead's mouth pulled into a thin line and the hand pushed harshly against the bruise.

"That is what you get for thinking you could take care of Death Eaters that put your father to shame." The scolding words tore at Draco's heart and he fought down the tears that burnt at the back of his eyes. He refused to believe that they were from the disappointment from Charlie instead of the pain.

Biting the inside of his lip, Draco refused to speak as he allowed himself to be lowered back onto the bed softly. With a flick of his wand, Charlie set a cooling charm around the bruise and the blonde sighed in relief as the pain began to melt away.

As the man stood to leave the room and stand guard once more, Draco caught his wrist. Those intense eyes turned on him once more and he was only able to whisper out, "Thank you." The smirk that he so hated lit on Charlie's lips.

Leaning down the man placed a quick kiss on the blonde's forehead before stepping away and walking out of the room. It was only seconds later that the shock drained into anger and Draco threw a pillow at the door. His only answer, the mocking laughter that echoed back.

{OT}

Thanks for reading! I only used Charlie from the entry that DanceThroughMyStory submitted. I hope that that was alright :)

Please review!


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